minnesota as heavy rains bring flash floods and force residents to evacuate and it may only get worse. under fire. the iranian president sparks a u.n. walk-out after blaming the u.s. for the 9/11 attacks. we'll talk with sarah shourd the american hiker locked up in iran more than a year about what life was like in prison. and mom arrested as these two girls fight, you can hear the mother of one of them cheering on her daughter. >> get her, sarah! >> now, she faces charges of child abuse early this friday >> now, she faces charges of child abuse early this friday morning, september 24th, 2010. captioning funded by cbs the weekend is upon us, good friday morning to all of you. i'm maggie rodriguez. >> i'm harry smith. good morning. >> a busy new days around here

so let's get to the dangerous flooding in wisconsin and minnesota where heavy rains left many areas covered in several feets of water and there's even more rain in the forecast today. poly wagner of our minneapolis station brings us up to date this morning from owatonna, minnesota. >> reporter: here in southern minnesota the intense early autumn rain triggered flooding that knocked out roads and flooded homes. the water kept rising through the night and the rain isn't over yet. the high water forced hundreds of people to leave their homes. floodwaters overwhelmed owatonna, where residents battled the rising water through the day. >> enough! enough rain. sglosht over ten inches of rain fell in some areas yesterday. and it's not just the damage to buildings and roadways. valuable farmland is being swamped, as well. >> higher than we've seen it back in the early '60s, so we're on record, uncharted territory

right now. >> reporter: the governors of minnesota and wisconsin declared emergencies for large parts of the states. in wisconsin the small town of arcadia got the worst of it, the national guard called in. nearly 350 homes there were evacuated, as three-foot waves of floodwater surged through the city. back in minnesota, residents worked through the day and into the night but, for some, it was a losing battle. >> yeah i feel really helpless watching the water come up in my basement and there's nothing you can do. you just watch it rise. >> reporter: the red cross opened a shelter in southern minnesota. somewhat dryer weather is forecast for today. but, another storm system is expected over the weekend. maggie? >> thank you. we'll get the extended fore tsdzforecast from dave in a moment. first, harry. now to politics one of the biggest issues in congress right now the bush-era tax cuts will expire next year and will not be decided until after election day. dfkt leaders made the decision

as sarah palin announced a challenge to a key group of democrats in congress. cbs news congressional correspondent nancy cordes is in washington with more. nancy, good morning. >> harry, good morning. sarah palin has positioned herself as the nexus between the republican and tea parties working aggressive to get some in both parties elected. in what was shaping up the biggest battle of the fall, senate democrats backed down and decided to put off a showdown over bush -era tax cuts until after the all-important november elections. some democrats think with the campaign out of the way, it would be easier to reach a compromise with the gop. republicans may be less willing to compromise if sarah palin's latest attack on vulnerable democrats succeeds. >> it comes in the form of a new website called takebackthe twenty. alaska's former governor is

raising money targeting twenty house democrats with deceit, all from conservative districts and voted for the health care bill. >> if republicans turn out and conservatives turn out in these districts republicans may have a good chance to recapture those house seats. >> reporter: if they do, palin will be able to claim partial credit, elevating her stature in a party lacking a clear leader, with two years to go before the presidential election. in a new interview on fox news, palin sent the strongest signal yet she's open to running for president. >> a reason to run is if nobody else were to step up with the solutions that are needed to get the economy back on the right track. i would offer myself up in the name of service to the public, but i also know that anybody, anybody can make a huge difference in this country without a title, without an office, just being out there as an advocate for solutions that can work to get the country on the right track. >> reporter: now that the campaign season is in full swing, palin is using facebook

and twitter to take swipes at the current administration almost daily. lies, damned lies, obamacare, six months later she tweeted to her 260,000 followers last night. she doles out advice to candidates endorsed on twitter telling delaware's christine o'donnell to shun the national media. o'donnell says she has stopped doing those interviews and so when she speaks, they listen, hairley. thank you very much. joining us ann cowell tur and maria cardona. good morning. >> ann, let me start with you, this whole i went on the website this morning with the 20 different congressional seats she's trying target, the sort of pledge to america which sounded like a response to the tea party, and sarah palin yesterday. is she the detacto head of the republican party right now? >> she's very powerful. i mean, the same way we kept

being asked is rush limbaugh the head, she has that sort of influence right now which is why i always find it kind of strange when people ask if she's going to run for president. i mean, i like what she said just there, kind of a threat to republican presidential candidates, you better be saying the right things or maybe i will get in. but, to give up what she has now and run for president would be like rush giving it up and running for president. she has more influence than a president does. >> is that really the truth, what that was yesterday in that interview with greta was listen to me, listen to who we are and if you -- if you embrace our orthodoxy, you'll have a chance? otherwise, i will put my foot through the door? >> well, i haven't spoken to her but i kind of took it that way. i wouldn't say exactly orthodoxy but, no more john mccains or bob doles. >> let me switch this to maria. just looking at this from an outside perspective, the

republicans, the tea party, sarah palin, the ones with the momentum and with the enthusiasm. if you are a democrat trying to run in this atmosphere, what do you say, what do you do, where do you go for a message? >> i think what you do is that you have to draw a very clear contrast between what you would be offering as a democrat, especially to working-class families and middle-class families and what the republicans would be offering if they were to take over in november. and, frankly, the pledge to america makes it very clear that they would be going back to the same regurgitated and importantly failed economic policies that were in place before 2006, when they were in power. john boehner said himself, we are going to be no different than we've been. >> it's interesting, though, they basically did a giant focus group online, what do you want us to be about? and that's what they wrote in this pledge. by and large what it seems to me is, it's about less government and less taxes. isn't that -- it seems to me,

this atmosphere of this recession that doesn't go away, even though it's officially over. >> right. >> that seems to be something -- >> we were giggling about that in the makeup run. oh, the recession is over, yea! of course that's the republican philosophy and, yes, it is smaller government, lower taxes. there's more to it. i mean, in some ways like the contract with america, it has -- such simple points that you can't believe this isn't already the case. the contract with america, for example, had congress has to live under the laws it passes itself. this new pledge has congress gets three days to read a new bill. you have to fight the constitutional provision before passing a law. these are common-sense proposals. >> maria, let me ask you this, is the president of the united states, is president obama, an asset or a liability to democrats running this fall? >> well, i think overall he's a huge asset. but, clearly, the democrats have to focus on their own districts and what's going on in their own campaigns. but again, i think that it would be -- it behoove democrats to

make that distinction between what the democrats would be offering or going to continue to offer in terms of the change that everybody voted for and everybody's frustration has been that that change has not come fast enough. if republicans come into power, we are clearly seeing from this pledge to america they would put the insurance industry back in power, wall street back in power, and, frankly, middle-class families and working-class families would, once again, go to the back burner, while they focus on extending the tax cuts for multi-millionaires and billionaires and will cost $700 billion in the future. >> americans have six weeks to figure it out. maria, ann, thank you both very much for being here this morning. >> thank you. >> thank you so much. >> for more than a year we've followed the story of three american hikers arrested along the iraq-iran border. last week one, sarah shourd, was freed from prison in iran and since then has been calling for the release of the others, he her fiance, shane bauer and her

friend josh fattal. after speaking with her mom several times the past year, it is my absolute pleasure to welcome sarah herself. good morning. >> thanks. good morning. >> wonderful to have you here with us. i saw you on sunday when were you freed and looking at you today, i get the same impression. there's not this look of joy, of celebration yet in your face. >> no. this is not what i thought it would be. you know, i thought this would be the end and at this point i don't know when the end is going to come so now i'm in this position the families have been in all along of anxiety and uncertainty and really no guarantees. of course, we have hope, but we don't know when this is going to end. >> hope shane and josh will be released. have you had any word since you've been free about how they are doing? >> no. i mean, as soon ace left the prison walls behind me, there's absolutely no communication and i have no way of knowing if they're okay or what's going on with them, you know, if there's been changes in their conditions now that i'm not there any longer. >> can you tell us what your days were like?

i know you spent most of your time, 23 hours a day in solitary confinement. >> yeah, it's true. and shane and josh were my lifeline. my whole day was centered around anticipating the short periods of time i would get with them in that courtyard. >> how much time would that be? >> in the beginning, nothing for the first almost three months and then half an hour. it slowly increased with begging and pleading and, you know, a lot of tears. but, i would, you know, anticipate and center my whole day around that time, it was my only human contact. so, when the hour new drew and i never exactly when i would be taken out but i would start pacing around the room and wringing my hands and often just crying full of anxiety. when i saw them, shane and josh, just incredibly compassionate, supportive young men. we would sit around in a circle and hold hands. every time i felt i was slipping away they would bring me back. >> you saw them an hour a day.

the rest of the time you were by yourself in that room. how big a room are we talking? >> about maybe five feet by ten. >> and that's where you had your meals? >> yeah. everything. >> everything. were they kind you to, were the guards kind? >> there's -- it's a mixed bag. some are really compassionate. i mean, it's a difficult job to have to have to watch people suffering. the rest of the world, you know prisoners are practically invisible, their pain is invisible. we can't see shane and josh right now, even though they're cramped in a little cell. their cell is the same size as mine was but there's two of them in there really with their beds taking up half the room they exercise side by side on a space the size of a towel and they have no idea when they are going to get out. they've committed no crime. they don't deserve to be there. and so, i want to make their pain more visible because when i was there my pain was invisible. and, you know, even the guards could just slam the door and walk away. no matter how much i cried and or at times i screamed, you

know. >> are you hopeful that they will be with you, that your fiance shane, who proposed in prison, will be with you and you can have your wedding soon. >> yeah. of course i'm hopeful. i mean, you know, hope is what sustains you and we know this is going to end. there's too many people in governments around the world that want this to end and i believe there can be, you know, a resolution that both sides are satisfied with. i believe it's better for everyone to end this. >> we wish you well. we've been with you this long and we're going to stay with it until it's over. >> all right. thank you. >> thank you so much, sarah shourd. nice to meet you. >> you, too. >> time to check on the news with jeff glor at the news desk. >> good morning, everyone. three members of the international space station crew including an american woman were supposed to be back on earth this morning. instead they are stuck in orbit. thanks to bulky clamps holding up their reentry spacecraft. the latest this morning from our space consultant bill harwood in orlando.

do flight controllers know exactly what is wrong, how to fix it and is the crew in any danger this morning. >> i'm not sure about what it will take to fix it. when they last left this when the crew went to bed it was unresolved and wasn't clear what the problem. what jeff, this is an extremely reliable system. they've been using it for decades. these hooks that hold the soyuz capsule in place release to let it go, that didn't happen and they're going to have to fix that. as to whether they're in danger or not, no, they were perfectly safe inside the capsule but the issue is the station has six people on board two of these capsules. there was an emergency that required a quick evacuation, right now, until there is resolved, three of those crew members don't have a way to get off. that's something that obviously gives you pause for concern. >> i would say so. bill harwood joining us from orlando, this morning. thank you so much. we'll check back again with you soon. 41-year-old teresa lewis the first woman executed in this country in five years. protesters gathered outside the

virginia prison where she was given a lethal injection last night convicted of arranging the murders of her husband and his son for a quarter million dollar life insurance policy. popular 1950s singing star eddie fisher has died. ♪ oh, my papa, to me, you are so wonderful ♪ >> fisher a singer but best known for marriages of course first in 1955 to film star debbie reynolds. they were called america's favorite couple then the biggest scandal of the day left her to marry elizabeth taylor who divorced him in 1959 to marry richard burton. fisher died wednesday in california of complications of hip surgery alt age 82. just about 16 minutes past the hour right now. dave price, back from las vegas. good morning. >> got your vega, on its way here. will be at your house later today. >> very nice. >> $3900. serious stuffer to get to now we

talked at the top of the show, about three inches in many places but as you head to southern minnesota, we're talking about six to sen, they really got walloped yesterday. look at this 24-hour loop t. just rolls and rolls and rolls, heavy rains, windy yesterday we were landing in chicago, gusty winds upwards of 20 miles per hour. today, 20 to 40. most of the rain goes well to the north to the upper peninsula of michigan showers push eastward, a cold front begins to advance but most moisture staying well north. problem is in places like otonna -- excuse me i'm mispronouncing into southern minnesota you'll wind up seeing the possibility of additional flooding because it will take a while to get the small streams into the rivers, where the mississippi is in its greatest threat. i-35 is closed in southern minnesota in both directions,

>> forgive me talking about owatonna, minnesota, watching it northeast looks good. that's your weather picture. >> you owe a ton apologies for mispronouncing. just kistd. thanks dave. two girls slug it out it's on tape. a mother arrested for egging on her daughter during the fight. we'll take you inside this case causing quite a controversy. >> lindsay lohan's drug abuse lands her back in court today. could she be back behind bars? >> plus facebook founder mark

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welcome back. a mind-boggling video circula circulating this morning not because it shows two girls fighting but because you hear the mother of one of the girls egging on her daughter. this morning she faces five years in prison for child abuse. we'll talk about the case when we come back. this is a very active household. always a lot going on. we have three children and two dogs. this is my baby. this is the most expensive member of the household. scotty needed a new laptop for college, but we don't like to pay interest unnecessarily. so, the blueprint plan couldn't have come at a better time because i'm able to designate

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hello. friday celebrating humans. look at them out there. wow! they're ready for some fun. we'll try to help them with that a bit. welcome back to "the early show." this morning, a lot of us are wondering what's going to happen to lindsay lohan today. >> yep. >> she's going back to court after failing a drug test. she tweeted that. the judge has already warned her that every positive test could mean another 30 days in jail. we'll ask her our friend jack ford what's in store for the troubled star. we told you yesterday how "sesame street" dropped katy perry as a guest after parents complained about what she was wearing. this morning we'll get the mup mets' points of view. elmo will be here celebrating its 41st season, which starts monday. first at 7:30, far too many videos on the internet show girls fighting each other but this morning we hear of an especially ugly one in florida that's caused police to lock up one of the parents. jeff glor is here with the

story. jeff, good morning again. >> good morning again to you. the local sheriff says a mother not only watched but encouraged her daughter's fight and now that mother is facing criminal charges. captured on video, the disturbing fight in palmetto, florida. >> get her, sarah. >> reporter: two 16-year-olds apparently fighting over a boy. it's a scene most parents would cringe at but cheering crowds encouraging the girls to beat each other. but, one voice egging on that fight was not a schoolmate but a mother. the woman in the white shirt is one of the girls' moms and police say she's guilty of a crime. >> we're basically in shock that a parent can sit there and watch their child or any child involved in a situation like this and not intervene. it's pretty obvious that this is child abuse.

>> reporter: the manatee county sheriff's office charged the 39-year-old april newcom for child abuse encouraging the girls to fight. in a police interview she acknowledged she was, quote, wrong and i understand where y'all are coming from. i think, unfortunately, it was going to happen no matter what. it seems she knew about the fight before it even began. there she is walking with her daughter to confront the other girl. the fight lasted about three minutes. if convicted, newcomb could face up to five years in prison. she posted a $15,000 bail and was released from jail. police do say nobody was seriously hurt in that fight. maggie? >> jeff, thank you very much. psychologist dr. jeff gardere joins us now a contributor to healthguru.com. good morning. >> good morning. >> she facing five years in prison n. your view was her behavior criminal. >> criminal, atrocious, absolutely stupid and i think at this point she realizes what she did was wrong, she got caught up

in the moment. good parenting does not dictate you egg your child on. you work with your child and teach them conflict resolution skills and, i have to point out, she was afraid her daughter might get hurt in the back of the head because she had a previous head injury and, as we can see, she's been hit with rapid punches in the back of the head several times so this is absolutely horrific. >> not only did she get caught up in the moment we see her walking with her daughter to the fight so it appears she knew about it beforehand and didn't try to stop it. where's the parenting here? >> it seems like a lot of people knew about it, as you see surrounded by folks, they posted this thing on youtube, of course. the parenting was non-existent here. i think we've seen this before, where parents get caught up, living sigh cariously through their children and i guess she wants her daughter to win because in her own way she's helping her daughter with herself-esteem but it's absolutely the wrong thing. maybe she wants herself to win to say she's got herself a champion on her hands but it is,

again, atrocious. >> another mom shows up and doesn't stop it, either. why is this happening? sts' not just one lone mother who was clueless but at least two in this case. >> absolutely, as well as others surrounding them. i think what's going on we're seeing more of these girls gone wild sorts of situations, as women have gotten more rights, equal rights, as they should, i think they are making the same mistakes that males make, you know, letting that testosterone flow, trying to solve problems by physically fighting. in fact, what we find out, you're not solving anything. i always say to my young patients that your mind is your best weapon. we need to teach our children how to solve problems in the long run and not try to solve them in the short run by winning a fight because no one wins and these girls could have been severely injured. >> is it wrong, in your opinion, that the school's not touching this with a ten-foot pole? they say it happened outside of our campus so the girls can come back to school no problem. >> let me tell you, i think the

school is absolutely wrong by not getting involved. statistics show kids are involved 30% of kids in our schools, if not more, are involved in these fights and bullying, and so on. when schools step in and they do workshops on stemming violence, on learning conflict resolution skills, we dramatically drop these incident of fighting and bullying and so on. so, the school must step in and do workshops and get involved. i don't care that it wasn't on school grounds. the school knows about it and better do something about it. they have to set an example. >> i agree but it ultimately starts with the parents and hopefully every parent learned a lesson from this. >> absolutely, parents working with the scho

>> up next, will lindsay lohan make a return appearance behind bars? we'll look at the case against her as she goes back to court today. this is "the early show" on cbs. recently, sharp made a major leap forward in the science of color with quattron. by adding a fourth color -- yellow... yellow. banana. ...to the standard rgb color system, quattron produces more colors... banana! ...and makes images brighter. banana! banana! when seen in 3d -- whoa! whoa! aah! quattron makes tv so realistic... whoa! ...you won't believe your eyes. [ male announcer ] aquos quattron 3d from sharp. [ engineer laughs ] you have to see it, to see it. [ woman #2 ] i'd like to enjoy things again. [ woman #3 ] i feel these aches and pains.

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lindsay lohan goes back to court this morning one month after getting out of rehab. she told fans last week on twitter that she tested positive for drugs, that's a violation of her parole. could she go back to rehab or back to jail? let's ask cbs news legal analyst jack ford. good morning. >> good morning, harry. >> she goes back to court dachl what's going to happen? >> a lot of possibilities. we're not sure. the judge hasn't said yet. she could walk in and say, i'm pleading not guilty to this, other circumstances are involved in which case they were set it down for another date. she could walk in and say as on twitter feed, her lawyer, yes,

look, made a misstake. we breached the requirements here and could be handled right away today. the judge might say, okay, no issue. the only issue what am i going to do, so a couple of possibilities. >> and is the choice going back -- well, i mean, a myriad of choices but among them going back to rehab or actually going to jail. >> you know what, when you have a violation of probation, the judge has a vast opportunity, in terms of what he or she is going to do here. we know that the judge had warned her saying if you come back here again, you know, bring your toothbrush. you're going for 30 days. the judge doesn't still have to send her for 30 days. if i'm her lawyer -- >> 30 days is not 30 days. >> that's the other thing. if i'm her lawyer i might come in and say, judge here's what we want to do. we've set up our own rehab schedule, a hard-core place she's not walking out in two weeks but there for 30, 45 days. let's do that, a better resolution of this than dropping her jail for 30 days. as you said even if she says 30

days, one of the question about this thing is the integrity of the justice system out there. if 30 days means five days who is it helping? it is not helping the system. >> on the other end, among all the heinous crimes being committed out there all this time -- all of this court time being consumed by -- owe. >> it's a dem ma because you've got to have respect for the justice system and sentences but as you said is this a murder? clearly not. something to be dealt with in some fashion, obviously. >> one of the other issues here she apparently has a deal to make a movie. now, if you're representing her and you can stand there in front of the judge and say, look, this is -- one of the things we know that's going to help her along the way is getting her employment and if you promise her rehab or whatever else, would a judge listen to an argument like that sthirchlts it could be a big problem. i had a client one time say to me i don't want to be probation. let me do my jail time because i know i won't do well on probation. so, i'll sign off to do my, you know, 30, 60, 90 days because i won't have somebody looking over my shoulder.

i don't know if she would say that, it would not be a good thing. but professionally if she needs to get out and do this film, we heard about the linda lovelace film she's due to do in december, it might well be she might say that. >> if you are a betting man, would you think she's will be in the clinicer tonight. >> i don't know if she will be in the clinicer tonight. i don't think she will go home ultimately. she will go someplace but i don't think home. >> thanks very much. facebook's mark zucker berg friends newark, new jersey with a $100 million donation. we'll have that story, when we come back. give back to society. felicia jackson promised her late sister that she would take care of her children. but she needed help. i used my american express open card to get half a million points to buy building materials to help build the jackson family a new home. well, i know if my dad was still around, he would have told me, with no doubt... he would have told me it's a no brainer and i knew that from the start.

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it also protects these other areas dentists check most. new crest pro-health clinical toothpaste. for healthier gums. a big welcome to all our friends out on the plaza and here's a kind of friend we'd all like to have mark zuckerberg the billionaire behind facebook donating a huge chunk of change to one of america's needistest

school districts. >> reporter: at the founder of facebook, you wouldn't think he would neetd any more friends but he just picked up another 39,000 of them. they are the students of newark, new jersey's public schools. and the recipient's of the ceo's $100 million donation. >> for somebody to give back to newark and the kids of newark is wonderful. >> reporter: the 26-year-old biggest charitable contribution is headed to one of the nation's lowest performing school districts. just 40% of newark's students learn to read and write by third grade. and only 46% graduate from high school. this, despite spending nearly $20,000 per pupil, the highest in the state. zuk kerberg, who attended harvard university and is the subject of the soon-to-be-released film "the social network" is not the first billionaire to earmark private

funds for failing schools. last year, bill and melinda gates promised $90 million to the memphis school district and another $100 million to help students in tampa zuk kerberg is working with newark's democratic mayor, a rising star in new jersey politics who zuk kerberg is now counting on to turn around the state's largest school district. >> he's going to have to be bold and he's going to have to be innovative and really bring the newark school system up to par. >> reporter: initial plans for the money include merit pay for teachers and expansion of charter schools. two priorities the school district believes will be $100 million well spent. seth doan, cbs news, new york. >> you got to give props to the mayor of newark, traveling around the country making all kinds of friends, oprah is his best and now gets this huge donation. >> it is not a matter of it the

money. if you don't spend all the money in the world wisely -- i think the bar is raised really high for everyone there to deliver to make the schools better. >> the question is how much is to counterbalance some of the negative p.r. from this movie "the social network". >> right t. doesn't necessarily portray it in the best light can can, you thought? >> a whole other story than today said he didn't want this donation to come out now, so this whole to and fro -- exactly. this movie does not portray him in the most positive light. >> everyone says it is fanatic, though. >> it is amazing. i did see it. >> getting amazing reviews this morning. >> you said it was our modern day "wall street"? >> i think 2010 what "wall sfreet" was in the late '80s, captures the [ inaudible ], they say. >> can't wait to see it. stay with us, everybody. new wisk, with our breakthrough stain spectrum technology

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there's no mistaking friday on the plaza, there is a different energy to the crowd. you can feel the excitement for the weekend. welcome back to "the early show" i'm maggie rodriguez with harry smith. what you are looking at. >> you get a sense somebody's celebrating october-fest or -- >> yes. they are having a big parade here tomorrow in the city. >> huge. >> that is miss german america herself. >> it is? that's her? >> that's her. >> i thought i rick nieced her, wow. >> hello. we have a lot coming up this hour of "the early show." we'll talk about something all parents should be aware of, the abuse of prescription drugs by teenagers, getting to much such a problem the drug enforcement administration is holding a national takeback today tomorrow. you can bring all the expired and unused prescription drugs you have in your home to local collection points so that you can keep them out of the hands of your children. we're going to hear this morning what else you can do to keep your kids safe.

>> also here's a question for you this morning, what if "magnum p.i." and one of the band of brothers teamed up in a great new tv series? right? >> sounds like pretty great. >> that's happening on cbs tom selleck, donnie wahlberg along with actress bridget moynahan, look they are in the studio. >> hello! [ cheering ] >> i saw -- i've seen the first episode of "blue bloods" getting great reviews. it's really, good really, really good. >> well, with that cast -- >> no kidding. it premieres tonight on cbs. >> first let's check the news, mr. jeff glor is inside at the news desk. >> thank you very much. a flooding emergency in the midwest this morning flag flooding forced hundreds of people in southern minnesota and wisconsin to leave their homes. poly wagner of our minneapolis station is in owatonna, minnesota this morning with the latest. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. both governors have declared

emergencies in large parts of the state. we are here in southern minnesota where folks spent all day yesterday and a good portion of the night battling the rising water. >> everybody is pulling together. everybody knows, you know, it's help everybody. whoever needs help gets the help. >> reporter: the heavy rain triggered high-rising, fast moving water that knocked out roadways and inundated homes. floodwaters overwhelmed owatonna. >> it just keeps rising and it's not stopping. >> reporter: more than 10 inches of rain fell in some areas yesterday. the high water damaged roads, homes, and valuable farmland. in wisconsin, this the small town of arcadia was hard hit. the national guard was called in to help. nearly 350 homes were evacuated. >> the house i went to we did evacuate was just above the knee. a couple areas we walked through, i had it above the belt buckle. >> reporter: folks here in southern minnesota are going to get a little bit of a break from

the weather today but, jeff, another storm system is expected this weekend. >> we'll keep watching. thank you very much. in virginia, teresa lewis has become the first woman to be executed in this country in five years. protesters gathered outside the prison where the 41-year-old received a lethal injection last night condemned for hiring two men to murder her husband and his son in 2002. three members of the international space station including an american woman were supposed to be back on earth this morning. instead, they are stuck in orbit. clamps holding their reentry capsule to the station refused to open last night. controllers spent hours trying to free the soyuz but failed and will try again today. an air shore horror a single engine aircraft clipped the ground in indonesia before crashing and bursting into flachls. the pilot is in critical condition. back outside, dave price another check of weather on this friday morning. >> whoa! >> wow!

>> almost knocked you over there, dave. >> good morning. i feel the earth move under my feet, jeffrey. good morning to you. great people out here. first of all, people from iowa who are here and folks in for the steuben day parade. very funny story. we were in las vegas yesterday. i was behind a bunch of people who were coming to march in the parade. it took eight or nine hours for people to get through tsa because they had to take off every single clip but it is nice to see you, wonderful celebration of german culture here in new york city. >> thank you. >> friends promoting something in mora co, mayor kesh, we've been there for the show, so lovely. let's see what is happening across the country right now still messy weather rolling through northern great lakes. we saw just a few minutes ago the historic flooding in sections of southern minnesota and into wisconsin. most of the moisture goes into canada. here in the northeast dealing with record-setting heat today. keep in mind, places like

raleigh and d.c. upwards of 96 degrees, close tom 90 in the burbs and warm up and down the eastern seaboard. that's a >> this weather report sponsored by subway restaurants. build your better breakfast and grab lunch to go, too. >> and that's a quick look at your weather picture. good morning. mag see. inside to you. >> danke, dave.

up next, a national epidemic, millions of teenagers abusing prescription drugs. we'll tell parents what they can do it to stop it right now. you're watching "the early show" on cbs. best deal this side of sunrise, so come in and we'll make yours! get a western egg white muffin melt and a 16-ounce cup of freshly brewed seattle's best coffee. just $2.50. build your better breakfast today at subway! just $2.50. when allergies make them itch, don't wait for your pills to kick in. choose alaway, from the eye health experts at bausch & lomb. it works in minutes and up to 12 hours. bausch & lomb alaway. because it's not just your allergies, it's your eyes.

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can we go get some ice cream? yeah. ♪ and i do ♪ and i do ♪ and i do 8:709. time for this morning's healthwatch. teens abusing prescription drugs, every day in america, according to the drug enforcement administration, 6,000 teenagers use prescription drugs to get high for the very first time. and cbs news correspondent michelle miller met some of them at the daytop adolescent substance abuse center in new jersey. >> when i started using pills, i was 15. i just took them and fell in love. >> everyone in my school does them. >> i had thoughts of robbing a pharmacy. >> reporter: by all appearances they are unlikely drug addicts from loving home in well-to-do neighborhoods. but these kids are among the more than three million teens who admit to having abused

prescription drugs. many like megan get their fix from the family medicine cabinet, where she found oxycontin, an openiate prescribed for chronic pain and one of the most abused prescription drugs in america. >> my mom had had surgery and she had them in the cabinet, took them. she didn't notice. two weeks later, i had already gotten the point i was doing them 24/7. >> reporter: how easy is it to get prescription pills. >> some kids fine a way to like somehow get ahold of a prescription like a paper to give the doctors and, you know, would go to several different doctors and just get a couple bottles. >> reporter: how much would you use, how often would you use it? >> every day. >> reporter: every day. >> yeah. roxss, san knack dz coloopine. >> yeah, probably. >> reporter: although the kids tried to hide it their addictions were identified and they are currently receiving

treatment. >> somewhere along the way you need to figure out how to stay clean when you get out of here. >> reporter: how did your parents not know you would high. >> i would make up excuses like if i started to vomit because i was like too high i would go, i'm sick, i ate something bad, something like that. >> reporter: and they believed you. >> yeah, i think my mom kind of wanted to believe me. >> reporter: prescription drugs. why do you think that's growing in popularity? >> easier access, almost like a safer way to get it because you don't have to go to like the corner. >> reporter: that sense of security has led to an epidemic. >> the abuse of pharmaceutical drugs is up around 9 ps over just last year. the teens who abuse prescription drugs for non-medical purposes did it before age 15. >> reporter: in an effort to reduce pill abuse and theft the us drug enforcement administration will hold its first nationwide prescription drug takeback tomorrow. people can safely dispose of unwanted medication at more than 3,000 sites around the country there.

are parents out there that say, not my kid. no way. >> i would say, don't blow it off. i mean, they're everywhere. >> it can happen to anyone. there's no like person or kid out there that like has a bubble around them saying like i'll never do drugs. >> reporter: michelle miller, cbs news, new york. >> here to talk more about this, our contributor dr. jennifer hartstein child and adolescent psychologist. good morning, jen. >> good morning. >> 400% increase in the last ten years y. do you think it is so dramatic. >> it is an incredibly huge increase. i think there is ease of use. >> easy access like the girl said. >> like she was saying, in your house, your medicine cabinet. you don't have to go seek it on and can hide it more if the signs aren't there so your parents can know what you are doing. >> what's also scary, kids seem to get younger and younger. kids as young as 12 years old are doing this. >> yes, starting so much earlier, 12 and older. >> if your kid smokes you can smell the smoke or drink you can see they are drunk but if they

abuse prescription drugs, how can you tell? >> it much harder. they talked about feeling hot, maybe nauseous, their eyes are red, nose is running, lett a gic, problems in school. some of the signs are the same but much harder to look for. also look in your cabinets and see what's going on. >> not only be cabinets, aren't there other household hot pots. >> in your kitchen, they are using -- and inhalants from your garage. look anyplace there is some sort of chemical, look there. >> you can talk to your kids about drug abuse. what can you do besides that to prevent this? >> there's three things you really want to keep in mind. the first you want to do is monitor, know what is in your house, what's in your cabinets. get rid -- you know, kind of do inventory. the second thing you want to to do is secure it, really want to xhoeshgs lock it up, keep it protected. the last thing you want to do is throw it away, dispose of the things you are not using. get rid of it. that's what that action tomorrow

is all about. >> that's right you can take them to certain locations we'll put on our website and dispose of them. i think the next tep will be particularly helpful to parents. you may not realize it but your child may be talking about drug abuse in front of using code words, right? >> yes so, many things. we've got to think about what that is. one thing they will talk about a lot they are going pharming, going and looking through, using chill pills or tranqs, big boys and [ inaudible ] is a hot thing right now and may be using things they call puffe in or skittles, using the cough medicine to get high, as well. >> like that one girl said no child is a bubble. >> no and parents really pay attention to their own attitudes and teach that to their kids. >> as always, thanks so much. >> thanks. coming up a police drama and family saga all in one. tom selleck and donnie wahlberg and bridget moin nan are here to talk about their new series on

cbs "blue bloods." we'll be right back. .. yellow. banana. ...to the standard rgb color system, quattron produces more colors... banana! ...and makes images brighter. banana! banana! when seen in 3d -- whoa! whoa! aah! quattron makes tv so realistic... whoa! ...you won't believe your eyes. [ male announcer ] aquos quattron 3d from sharp. [ engineer laughs ] you have to see it, to see it.

the new cbs crime dram na bleu bloodz following three jen stwrags rations of a tight-kmit family. we'll speak with the stars tom sell lick, donnie wahlberg and bridget moynahan in just a moment but first a sneak peek. >> oliver young has a felony record and bought a gun illegally. >> he bought it for self-drvs. >> i'm not defended him, i'm just saying. >> it sounds kind of like you are. >> you have a zero policy for drug crimes. >> who's side are you on? >> donnie wahlberg is detective danny ree gan and bridget moynahan plays assistant d.a. erin reagan. the family this morning. how is everybody? >> we're good. >> i got a chance to see it last night. congratulations. >> thank you for that. >> the paper is all full of

phenomenal news. looking at "the daily news" four stars for bleu bloodz. >> did we. >> i'll hand it over. tom, you got your picture in the paper. >> yeah, i know. the carrier, my dad. >> so many questions i don't know where to start but in this role you play the commissioner of new york. >> yeah. >> but you are wearing a uniform. >> yeah. >> which is a little different than new yorkers are used to. my question is, when you put that question on, what did it feel like? >> well, you know, i'm trying to be a good actor, as we learn about accuracy, i wanted to know what the ribbons were so i did my homework and right up at the top is a black ribbon that says wtc and that's a first responder. and it just reminds us of, i think, all of us, of the responsibility, you know, robin greene, who wrote for "the sopranos" now writing this show

said at the press conference, you know, we've done anti-heroes, we want to do a show beheroes and i think that is the perception and reality with nypd police officers. >> and it's, also, the show is not just hero worship because these people, this is a real family with real complexity, right? here you are, amidst all this testosterone. right? >> the story of my life. >> so, when you found out you would do a show with these two guys, what were your first thoughts versus the reality once you got on set? >> well, you know, tom was obviously a draw and and donnie and i had worked together before so i think there was already an ease there and comfortability that i was really looking forward to being with and it's been the same way. our first day altogether with a family scene, we shook hands, introduced ourselves and dove

right into the relationship. >> and started a fight. >> yeah. >> started a fight. >> the family dinner scene was our first day's work, so it was kind of how do you do? we're family. >> wow. so, wahlberg, boston guy, right, playing a new york cop. >> we got to go right there, don't we? >> there's nowhere else to go, pal. [ laughter ] >> i'm -- i'm begging them to let me be a mets fans, the writers. they still want us to be a yankee fan but i'm trying to, you know, i'm sliding -- my paychecks back under the table to let me wear a mets hat in the show instead of a yankees. but out in the streets it's great, you know, a lot of fun. i think since the red sox won the world series, new yorkers have lightened up with torturing us. >> you think? what are you drinking, man? >> what they do now, instead of, you know saying go back to boston, you know with an angry face they say it with a smile,

you know what i'm saying? it's different now. >> well, never mind. we don't have to go there. you are in los angeles, right? >> yes. >> you have a 3-year-old? >> yes. >> you did move back to do the show or how is that all -- >> yeah, we moved back here for the show and it's -- it's fine. new york's actually a really good city for kids, lots to do. >> actually, we all did. we all -- my youngest son all relocated kind an opportunity we didn't want to pass up but is tricky commuting. >> no question. but, shooting in new york, may i just say, as a new yorker, as an adopted new yorker, here over like 25 years now, but thank you for shooting this in new york because it makes it that much -- the very first scene i said i know exactly where that is, that's in washington heights. there's the g.w. bridge, i ride my bike there. it makes it real. >> we think it was another character in the show. it was clear it reflected that in the script and it's pretty hard to argue it's not a better

show to shot here. cbs had to step. >> up it cost more money. no question about that. the other question quickly before we let you guys go, jesse stone still alive? >> jesse is alive and well, seven is in the can called "innocence lost" when they offered me, since it was cbs, i said, cleverly, um, how about another one? so we're writing number eight. >> ahh, very good. very good. very good. congratulations, really it's very compelling show and seems so well done. >> thanks. >> and heart and brains all seem in the right place. friday nights, right, 10:00? >> yeah. >> tonight. >> keep on fighting kids. >> we are. do appreciate it "blue bloods." >> i do love new york. >> he does, he says so. it premieres tonight at 10:00,

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we've got a great and lively crowd on the plaza this morning. >> oh, no. lost that from the world cup. >> and [ inaudible ] are back. >> they are. they thought they were disbanded but one landed here on the plaza. a shout out quickly, you see these central college band over there. >> wait a minute. >> no. no. no. there is a huge division 3 football game this weekend, right, between central college and coe college, two top ranked three. >> indy three. >> showdown at cedar rapids so shout out to central college my alma mater. welcome back to "the early show," everybody. you, of course, heard the one and only tom jones a second ago, right? he is back at the age of 70, reinvented himself and his music to rave reviews, his lates album features gospel, blues, we'll hear some of that, what an amazing voice, right. >> amazing. >> all coming up in a couple of

minutes. >> when he sings gospel, you would never guess where he is from. do any of you know where tom jones is from. >> wales. >> central college. >> no, from wales. he can sing gospel like nobody's business as you will hear. also if you haven't booked your holiday travel you may be in for sticker shock, thanksgiving day holiday fare up about 10% but never fear our peter greenberg will steer us towards the steals of deals. >> the experts of deals. when did your kids start watching "sesame street." >> not yet, he's too little. >> toddler, somewhere in there, 3ish. >> jack is ten months. but "sesame street's" 41st season begins monday. still making headlines, weaver talked about the katy perry incident. katy perry singing with elmo or not anymore because some parents were upset about what shall was wearing. they said no. this morning we have very special guests in the studio.

>> ughhh. wow! >> there he is, the man, the legend, the dream elmo. >> elmo, do you like katy perry? >> el me loves katy perry. >> i think that's a yes. >> do you like katy perry's outfits. >> i love everything about katy perry. >> barely contain him. >> first dave has a check of the weather. young dave, how are you doing? >> good. thank you very much. nice to see you. >> yep, you know, what if you have it, work it, that's what i say, work it, wally, wally, the weather dog right here. and we have got a great bunch of folks who are taking part in strut your mutt this weekend to benefit 19 local shelters again. we say it all the time, if you can adopt a pet, if you have a home, do it, wally from is shelter and so are these dogs and so is chance. let's see what is happening across the country, shall we, everybody? warm weather rolling in -- if

you cannot stop barking, i'll have to ask you to leave -- all right warm weather rolling in watching still rain rolling through the northern great lakes. nothing like the severe flooding we've seen already rolling through minnesota and wisconsin. but, those flooding dangers certainly not over. west coast looks good but again record heat in the northeast, showers in south florida. that's a quick look at our >> we've got a love connection going on down here. wow. both will be watching "sesame street" in a while.

hey, happy birthday henry swain, 6 years old today. that's a quick look at your weather picture. harry? >> thanks a lot, dave. holiday travel getting pricey according to "usa today" an average price for a domestic ticket will cost an average of $170 more during peek days of thanksgiving week, for instance. the good news there are alternatives. our travel editor peter greenberg is here to help us find deals and discounts. good morning, sir. >> good morning, sir. >> why are airline fees higher this year. >> because they he can, fewer planes, fewer flights and seats intersecting with increased demand. the law of supply and command kicks in but works on the number you gave. the average airfare is up 10% over last year for thanksgiving about $384. it gets worse than because the airlines have 26 days between now on the end of the year charging surcharges for peak travel days another $30 for

flight so ka-ching, ka-ching. >> you've really got to make plans now. are there sales? >> there are, believe it or not at this moment until monday a number of airlines are having sales you have to book by the 27th of september, american's doing it, southwest, virgin, a number of airlines will match the fares but black-out dates, too, we can talk about that. the fares are good but not on every flight or every seat. >> you have ideas about how people can really, you know, make sure their pocketbook doesn't get absolutely busted in this process. >> yeah. >> talk to us about that. >> it is called take the bus. not a bad idea, actually on short-haul flights. >> much thighsr. >> yes. think of alternate airports, think of oakland instead of san francisco, providence instead of boston. my fave receipt secret in airport instead of jfk. also take flights, i know it is problematic, trains planes,

automobiles but look for ones with stops, always cheaper. >> makes a big deal. what are dead weeks. >> my favorites of the year. call thanksgiving what it is an obligatory dysfunctional family get-together. it really is. it is! why would you do that to yourself? wednesday traveling. >> no wonder it is my favorite holiday. what you want to do either fly on thanksgiving morning or christmas morning, the only two days the airlines aren't charging the surcharges. >> on the actual holiday day. >> exactly. get the earliest flight to get where you need to go -- come back friday when nobody is traveling. >> it is very interesting, also those days, when i was in my 0s, i always flew on those days and there was no one on the airplane there. are people on the aired planes now. >> then the dead weeks quickly the week immediately following the dysfunctional family get together after thanksgiving week nobody is flying you own the

plane and can bowl on it or the weekend after new year's everybody is recovering that dysfunctional holiday. >> the first week like after -- in january. >> exactly, you really get savings. >> how are trains doing speaking of trains, planes, automobiles. >> no black-out dates, really good fares and no black-out dates as you said go to washington for $148, l.a. to san francisco, kansas city to chicago there. are good alternatives especially that time of the year. if you don't want to schlep, everything ship it ahead like i do, especially the presents. >> a kid in a poft gold, hidden in the jackpot. >> anywhere you want to go. >> appreciate it. >> you got it. >> for more go to our website earlyshow.cbsnews.com. maggie? >> can you believe it's been 46 years since tom jones first sang his way to the hearts of fans around the world? hit songs like "it's not unusual" what's new "pussy cat" and, of course, "she's a lady"

propelled him to enter stardom. this summer he celebrated his 70th birthday and released a brand new album from his gospel and blues roots. we are happy to have him here this morning to perform the classic "didn't it rain" ladies and gentlemen, tom jones. ♪ ♪ ♪ rain, all night long ♪ didn't it rain ♪ didn't it rain, oh, my lord ♪ didn't it rain ♪ well, it rained for 40 days and 40 nights without stoppin' ♪ ♪ no one glad when the rain stopped dropping. knock on the windows, knock on the doors, come on brother noah, can't you take no more ♪ ♪ god has a key and you can't get in ♪

♪ won't you listen ♪ how it rains, listen how it's rainin' ♪ ♪ didn't it rain, children ♪ ♪ rain, oh, my lord ♪ didn't it rain ♪ didn't it rain ♪ didn't a little rain all night lord ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ to the north ♪ to the south ♪ to the east ♪ to the west ♪ all day ♪ all night ♪ all day ♪ didn't it rain, children ♪ rain all night long ♪ didn't it rain ♪ didn't it ♪ rain all night long ♪ didn't it rain yeah! ♪ ♪

♪ rain, children ♪ ♪ rain, all night long ♪ didn't it rain ♪ mf ♪ didn't it ♪ oh, all night long ♪ didn't it rain ♪ didn't it rain, children ♪ rain all night long ♪ didn't it rain ♪ didn't it ♪ did a little all night long ♪ didn't it rain ♪ won't you listen ♪ how it's rainin' ♪ listen how it's rainin' ♪ some morning, some groan eeg ♪ ♪ runnin', some prayin' ♪ listen how it's rainin' ♪ listen how it's rainin' ♪ morurnin', in groanin', in

runnin', some hidin' ♪ ♪ won't you listen how it's rainin' ♪ ♪ listen how it's rainin' ♪ mournin' groanin', cryin', rainin' ♪ ♪ hmmmmmmm ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ didn't it rain ♪ yes, it did ♪ rain, children ♪ rain, all night long ♪ ♪ did a little all night long ♪ did a little rain ♪ ♪ >> yeah! >> ooh. tom jones. singin' gospel. sounds so good. good morning. >> good morning. >> where did your love of this music come from? really it's not what you would expect from someone from wales, not exactly the gospel capital

of the world. >> no. well, i was listenin' to it on the radio when i was growing up in wales. we had the bbc radio. and they used to play a bunch of things, you know, a lot of different things and anytime a blues song would come on or gospel song would come on, as a child, you know, it would perk me up. and then, i realized that a lot of the gospel songs that tuned into gospel songs were really hymns, you know, british hymns. so i was singing those hymns in a presbyterian chapel on a sunday. so, i got into -- you know, i loved spiritual music and finally i got a chance to record it. >> and i read that you used to sing gospel music with elvis when you two were on tour in vegas. is that true? >> yes. >> what songs did you sing and was he surprised you were a gospel singer? >> he was surprised i knew so many songs but i was at cesar's palace those days and elvis at the hilton. after we finished our shows we would go back to elvis's suite

thing he would bring his musicianss upstairs and we would sing gospel songs. elvis loved gospel music more than anything else so i used to join in on some, the ones i knew, i would. one of the songs on the album we did is called "run on" when elvis was singing it i would jump in, you know. sew said. >> must have sounded so good. >> he said you should record that. i said, i will one day. >> luckily for us tom jones has recorded this album of gospel music and here to sing exclusively "green, green grass of home" once again tom jones. >> thank you, love. ♪ ♪ ♪ the old home town looks the same ♪ ♪ as i step down from the train ♪

♪ and there to meet me is my mama and papa ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ down the road i look ♪ and there runs mary ♪ hair of gold and lips like cherries ♪ ♪ it's good to touch the green, green grass of home ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ yes, they'll all come to meet me ♪ ♪ arms reaching ♪ smiling sweetly ♪ it's good to touch the green, green grass of home ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ the old house is still standin' ♪ ♪ tho the paint is cracked and

dry ♪ ♪ and there's that old oak tree ♪ ♪ that i used to play on ♪ ♪ ♪ down the lane i walk with my sweet mary ♪ ♪ hair of gold and lips like cherries ♪ ♪ it's good to touch the green, green grass of home ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ then i awake and look around me ♪ ♪ at four gray walls that surround me ♪ ♪ and then i realize ♪ yes, i was only dreamin' ♪ for, you see, there's a guard and there's a sad old padre ♪

♪ arm in arm we'll walk at daybreak ♪ ♪ then i will touch ♪ the green, green grass of home ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ yes, they'll all come to see me ♪ ♪ in the shade of that old oak tree ♪ ♪ yes, they'll lay me 'neath the green, green grass of hoooommmmmeeee ♪ ♪ >> that is tom jones and we'll be back with a lot more of

we have been talking a lot

about "sesame street" this week thanks to this video of elmo with katy perry. it was supposed to be part of this ground-breaking program's 41st season, which starts on monday. but it was pulled after a controversy erupted over what perry was wearing. we had a big conversation about this yesterday. elmo is here with us this morning. along with "sesame street's" executive producer carol lynn paernt to talk to us about this controversy. how are you this morning? >> we're good, right, elmo. >> wonderful. >> yeah, wonderful first things first, making the video with katy perry. >> we had a play date. >> you had a play date. >> yeah and we were going to do dress-up. >> you were going to do dress-up. to me, it looked innocent enough to me. did you think -- >> innocent enough? elmo has no idea what you're talking about. we had a great time. >> take a look, elmo.

>> elmo was there and we had a great time. >> of course you did. the thing that's interesting to me, i said this yesterday, i'm not sure where the grievance comes from but this -- >> well, a wonderful talent miss katy perry. >> elmo, we'll talk to the boss. >> okay. >> okay. >> boss. >> how surprised were you at the reaction? >> i think we were very surprised. you know, we -- celebrities and parodies have been part of the show from the very beginning and it's intentional, there to draw in the parents so they will cove with the children and enhance education. >> i think plenty of people would want to c-view with katy perry oop. >> a great talent with a lot of parents that may not have grown up with "sesame street" and may not be bringing their children to watch "sesame street." we know how successful it can be -- >> did it it occur to you while she was there she was wearing

something inproemt. >> if we would have had a sweater on set or maybe one of burt's turtlenecks might have changed the feedback a bit but it was a party dress that was part of the theme of the story and it's a cute piece and we really do want people, katy perry's fans to continue to view it. it hasn't aired. it was online and it will continue to be on youtube and katy perry's website katyperry.com. >> she tweeted about this. wow, looks like my play date with elmo has been cut short. if you still wanna play, see it at -- >> tag you're it. >> we'll definitely have another play date because elmo loves miss katy. >> you have lots of great celebrities. >> jude law and mr. colin farrell and jennifer gardner and jason bateman and elmo loves -- >> i guess russell brand is not

cominging on, either. >> who's that. >> he elmo is of a certain age and always has been. there are certain things. >> he just doesn't know. >> exactly. >> do you guys worry anytime somebody has an objection to something now, you're going to worry about whether or not you can or should air it? >> no. we have a great interactive relationship with our fans and we listen particularly to parents. and this has gone on from the very beginning. we had a wonderful in the '70s a wonderful maury sundeck animation that was beautiful but a few parents had written it scared their child. >> i remember that. >> we're a safe haven for parents and we take that very seriously. >> don't. >> thank you for being there when i was a kid and now when my kids are kids. thank you. >> thank you so much. >> the new season

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